Dubai – The first day of the Big 5 Show, a trade fair for the construction industry, has already resulted in business for the air compressor manufacturing company Schulz, based in the city of Santa Catarina. This is the company’s first time at the fair, held in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. “We have come to the fair to do business,” said the export manager of the Schulz compressors division, Fabio Rosa.
Prior to coming to Dubai, the manager made a commercial consultation with the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce , and obtained a list of 700 Arab importers. “I e-mailed them all, inviting them to visit our stand in Dubai,” said Rosa. The guests included a Syrian buyer who came to the fair and placed an order with Schulz for a container of machinery of various capacities. Approximately 40 air compressors are going to be shipped.
Aside from Syria, the Schulz manager is also closing an order for a container to Saudi Arabia. “We have made many promising contacts on this first day,” stated Rosa. According to him, the company already exports to the Arab market and has distributors in several countries, but is always seeking new clients.
On this first day, Rosa received buyers from Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, among others, all of whom were interested in the company’s compressors. “The first day was a grade-A day,” said the manager.
Another Brazilian company that is attending the fair for the first time and found the first day to be highly promising is concrete mixer manufacturer Menegotti. The company, based in the city of Jaraguá do Sul, in the state of Santa Catarina, already exports to the Arab market as well, but is seeking distributors in countries to which it does not sell yet. “The prospects are good for doing business with Lebanon and Libya,” said the managing director of Menegotti, Jeferson dos Santos.
According to him, the company’s machinery faces plenty competition from Italian products, however the Brazilian pricing is more competitive. “We have heard that the region is crisis-ridden, but from the looks of it, that is not really the case of the neighbouring countries. They have good perspectives,” added Santos, who received more than 50 contacts at the fair.
High-end metals
The Brazilian pavilion, organized by the Arab Brazilian Chamber, features 24 companies, one of which brings a highly differentiated product: gold-plated bathroom metals. The items are supplied by Joller Toiletts de Luxo, based in the the city of São Paulo, founded two years ago. According to the company’s general manager, Jordi Castillejo, Joller decided to tap into the Arab market this semester, after several people said that the company’s items would appeal to Arab tastes. “We have come here to experiment,” said Castillejo, who received interested importers from countries such as the Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Iran.
Bathroom faucets by Joller are handmade using cast brass. Once finished, they are bathed in gold and then veneer to protect their brilliance. The faucet mixers receive the same finish, and are also adorned with Brazilian natural stones, such as sodalite, quartzite and jasper. The items are created by a Catalan designer, Joana Oller, who lives in Brazil.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
